Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XXI 24-25 Mar 2021
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Commodus Æ Medallion. Rome, AD 186-187. M COMMODVS ANTONINVS PIVS FELIX AVG BRIT, laureate and cuirassed bust to right / P M TR P XII IMP VIII, Tellus reclining to left, left arm resting on basket of fruit and cradling long vine branch from which hangs grapes above, her right hand placed on star-studded globe, around which are the figures of the Four Seasons; TELLVS STABIL COS V P P in two lines in exergue. Gnecchi 129, pl. 86, 9. 53.18g, 39mm, 1h.
Good Very Fine. Very Rare.
Ex Roma Numismatics Ltd., Auction XV, 5 April 2018, lot 576.
The production of medallions had been gradually growing since the reign of Hadrian, and reached a climax under Commodus. Used as gifts for the elite, we might consider them one of the devices of the emperor's new policy of self-promotion for they all spoke to the themes Commodus sought to uphold by his reign. On this medallion the theme of Tellus Stabilita ('The Earth Firmly Established') is embodied by the allegorical figure of Tellus who sits on the ground leaning upon an abundant basket of fruit, produce of the earth. Tellus reaches out her hand to rest on a large globe, representative of the heavens and thereby encompassing the whole empire. Around Tellus the seasons, in the guise of four women, pose gracefully.
For the average resident of the Roman Empire, life under Commodus was – if not a Golden Age – then peaceful and somewhat prosperous, according with the vision of the present medallion. His reign marked the final stage of the period known to historians as the Pax Romana, and within that saw much less warfare than the rule of his father Marcus Aurelius – even if it was to become notorious for instability in the upper echelons of the government and for the subjective style of Commodus' rule, which sparked much of this instability. In comparison to his spiteful relationship with the Senate, Commodus appears to have been popular among the army and the people, not least because of his organising of and taking part in gladiatorial fights and his magnificent distributions of largesse. This relationship with his subjects is evidenced in the controversial reversal of the conventional order of the subjects on which the power of the Emperor is supposed to rely, in the phrase Senatus Populusque Romanus – which became Populus Senatusque Romanus in many inscriptions across the Empire.
Good Very Fine. Very Rare.
Ex Roma Numismatics Ltd., Auction XV, 5 April 2018, lot 576.
The production of medallions had been gradually growing since the reign of Hadrian, and reached a climax under Commodus. Used as gifts for the elite, we might consider them one of the devices of the emperor's new policy of self-promotion for they all spoke to the themes Commodus sought to uphold by his reign. On this medallion the theme of Tellus Stabilita ('The Earth Firmly Established') is embodied by the allegorical figure of Tellus who sits on the ground leaning upon an abundant basket of fruit, produce of the earth. Tellus reaches out her hand to rest on a large globe, representative of the heavens and thereby encompassing the whole empire. Around Tellus the seasons, in the guise of four women, pose gracefully.
For the average resident of the Roman Empire, life under Commodus was – if not a Golden Age – then peaceful and somewhat prosperous, according with the vision of the present medallion. His reign marked the final stage of the period known to historians as the Pax Romana, and within that saw much less warfare than the rule of his father Marcus Aurelius – even if it was to become notorious for instability in the upper echelons of the government and for the subjective style of Commodus' rule, which sparked much of this instability. In comparison to his spiteful relationship with the Senate, Commodus appears to have been popular among the army and the people, not least because of his organising of and taking part in gladiatorial fights and his magnificent distributions of largesse. This relationship with his subjects is evidenced in the controversial reversal of the conventional order of the subjects on which the power of the Emperor is supposed to rely, in the phrase Senatus Populusque Romanus – which became Populus Senatusque Romanus in many inscriptions across the Empire.